Avoiding travel sickness

To minimise the risk of travel sickness, eat lightly before and during the journey. Avoid alcohol and stimulating drinks (tea, coffee). Choose the spots where there are less oscillations, near the wings on a plane, in the centre on board a boat or a bus. In a car, avoid reading and smoking. Stay in a vertical position as much as you can, lean your head-supportbackwards, stay still and avoid any rotation of the head. During transportation, if the first signs of sickness appear, look at a steady point in the distance or try sleeping. If all these preventive measures aren't enough, your doctor can prescribe you drugs like light sleeping pills or anti-sickness pills. Here are some precautions to follow: make sure the driver of the vehicle doesn't use any (risk of drowsiness), do not drink alcohol during the treatment (risk of disorderly behaviour), take them before departure for effectiveness; vomiting would make them ineffective. On board a plane, to avoid or ease sharp ear aches (due to the pressure variations of the cabin), one should blow through the nose whilst pinching it in order to pop your ears. If you have a cold or a runny nose, drink extra fluids, increase the humidity in the air with a vaporizer or humidifier, use saline nasal sprays, or ask the air hostess. During long flights, stretch your legs by walking up and down the plane, peddle movements with your feet or muscle contractions of the thigh are strongly recommended for people suffering from arthrisis or back pains. For people who are vicitms of anxiety or panic attacks during take off and landing it is recommended to inform the aircraft staff who are trained to deal with this kind of situation.